21. Therefore, this is what the Lord says:I am going to place stumbling blocks before these people;fathers and sons together will stumble over them; friends and neighbors will also perish.
22. This is what the Lord says:Look, an army is coming from a northern land; a great nation will be awakenedfrom the remote regions of the earth.
23. They grasp bow and javelin.They are cruel and show no mercy. Their voice roars like the sea, and they ride on horses,lined up like men in battle formationagainst you, Daughter Zion.
24. We have heard about it,and we are discouraged. Distress has seized us —pain like a woman in labor.
25. Don’t go out to the fields;don’t walk on the road.For the enemy has a sword;terror is on every side.
26. My dear people, dress yourselves in sackclothand roll in the dust. Mourn as you would for an only son, a bitter lament,for suddenly the destroyer will come on us.